


Oblivion

by nickyz



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Gen, Light Angst, im here to make the ending of duel monsters a happy one, not directly shippy but it is intended and might show up more blatantly if i add more to this
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-23
Updated: 2019-11-23
Packaged: 2021-02-26 05:42:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,138
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21538432
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nickyz/pseuds/nickyz
Summary: ob·liv·i·on/əˈblivēən/the state of being forgotten.
Relationships: Atem/Mutou Yuugi
Comments: 3
Kudos: 20





	Oblivion

The afterlife was staring him straight in the face, bright white light washing over his form and almost obscuring it completely. He cast a long and dark shadow over the room behind him that contained those he had come to know and love in his short time of revival. This is what they’d all come here for, the chance to return him home. To where he belonged all this time.

But now, looking into the hidden faces of his family and people, Atem could only think about how it felt wrong.

Here he was, standing on the precipice of oblivion, and he could not bring himself to cross the threshold. The heat of the desert sun beat down on his front from inside the paradise awaiting him, a stark contrast to the cold of the temple where he knew his old other half must still be watching. Even the warmth did not feel like enough to sway him. Perhaps out of a feeling of obligation, he walked further into the blinding glow and felt his tight uniform jacket disappear, a brilliant cape appearing in its absence. Then the weight of a crown upon his head, a necklace of gold rather than the stylish choker picked out by Yugi… 

He stilled and looked again at faces he could not see from this distance. They stared blankly back. One form that he recognized as belonging to Isis tipped her head thoughtfully, possibly sensing his struggle. There was no emotion that Atem could decipher from any of them, as though they were intentionally urging him to make his decision based entirely on what _he_ desired. He dared not turn his head to look behind himself, for he feared that once he did and saw his _new_ friends sad expressions, he wouldn’t be able to stop from running back.

Still, a cold feeling trickled down his spine as he went to take another step towards the waiting afterlife. Something was not right and he could just… _feel_ it. Against his better judgement, he looked over his shoulder, and he felt his heart stop.

There, back facing Atem, was Yugi. He was trailing far behind his friends, like he had only just finally accepted that Atem would not be coming back out of those doors.

Atem glanced quickly back to those awaiting him inside. Faceless and rigid like statues they remained, but Atem hoped he was not imagining the small nod delivered to him by Seto as he searched for an answer to what he should do. His choice was sealed then and there.

With the panic of a man drowning, Atem turned sharply on his heel and ran as fast as his legs would carry him back into the temple. On his first step he felt the golden piece holding his cape on his shoulders shift, then fly back like it was carried by a sudden strong gust of wind. His cape logically went next, rippling silently in the faux breeze as it tore away from his body. As he got close enough to see the complete, unobscured form of his partner, his crown slipped from his head and flew back too.

The world was a blur as the pharaoh was launched back into reality, still donning whatever was left of the clothing gifted to him by entering the doors. He didn’t stop running, and he soon heard a yelp of surprise as he slammed straight into Yugi, who just barely managed to keep his balance. Their group of friends turned at the sound, and the next noise to follow was a shocked gasp from Anzu.

“ _Atem?_ ” She asked, her voice a whisper. Yugi, with the cautiousness of a man trying not to disturb a speck of dust, looked down at the dark-skinned arms wrapped around his torso.

“...Atem?” Yugi questioned, craning his neck to try to glimpse the pharaoh’s face, only seeing brilliant black and red spikes from his current angle.

“I couldn’t do it,” Atem breathed in a shaking sigh, face uncomfortably buried in Yugi’s shoulder. He just wanted to be close to Yugi now, not brave enough to show his face yet, but Yugi seemed to have other plans. His partner forced his way out of Atem’s grip, making him look up in worry, only for Yugi to embrace him head-on. Yugi didn’t speak, but the gesture said more than any word could at this moment. They clung to each other for dear life, their grips bordering on painful.

Loud footsteps barreled towards them, and with a rush of air they were on the floor with the larger bodies of Honda and Jounouchi crushing them as they cried out. 

“You’re back!”  
“I knew you wouldn’t leave!” 

Their voices merged together with the amount of sobbing and sniffling interjected between their words, and Yugi and Atem were left speechless underneath the two very emotional men. Atem smiled, glad to be back, and Yugi laughed uncomfortably with tears in his eyes.

“You guys! Get off of them!” Anzu huffed, though judging by her hoarse tone, she wasn’t the most stable of the group herself. Jounouchi and Honda stood up quickly, trying to explain away their slightly embarrassing display, but Yugi and his former other self were not listening anymore. 

They looked beyond the dark temple, into the light of the open stone doors. There was the ancient group of people, Seto now obediently holding Atem’s discarded cape and crown in his arms. Atem knew in his heart that this meant he was relinquishing his role as a pharaoh, and that when his next death came, he would likely no longer have a place among the kings. He had willingly given it up to return to life. The thought, to his surprise, didn’t bother him. 

They both watched as the afterlife faded, the doors sliding closed with a loud bang. The temple grew silent, every eye focused on Yugi and Atem. Then without warning, the structure began to shake and shudder violently. The ground below the Memory Tablet collapsed, destroying it, and the Millennium Items fell deep into the earth. Yugi, on instinct, reached out in an attempt to catch the puzzle… but a firm hand stopped him. Atem’s hand. They didn’t really need it anymore.

“We should get out of here!” Bakura broke the silent spell cast over the room as he called down to the group further inside of the temple.

Jounouchi, Honda, and Anzu quickly headed up the stairs with words of agreement, leaving a hesitating Yugi and Atem. They gazed one last time at the doors of the afterlife, now closed forever, and grinned. This was what Atem wanted, and Yugi couldn’t be happier with the choice. They ran from the temple hand-in-hand, never turning back to see the translucent form of Shadi now standing in the rubble.

**Author's Note:**

> i got myself into yugioh as you can see  
> this was written very fast and the pacing feels off but i don't think there's much i can do to fix that, so enjoy  
> fic was inspired by listening to a couple bastille songs lmao
> 
> edit: adding my twitter to all my fics so you can follow me [here](https://twitter.com/chaosblast_)


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